In December I posted a poll asking visitors to vote based on their desktop environment and graphical toolkit preferences. While there were many votes in each category, the most noteworthy is that nearly 60% of respondents care if either Gtk or Qt is being used. The data is interesting because it highlights some of the progress that still needs to be made so all Linux software can work equally well no matter what desktop environment is being used.

In June I wrote an article comparing DVD ripping programs that run on Linux. At that time dvd::rip was my second choice, mostly because of its ugly interface. Now that it has an updated GUI I decided to go back and give it another try. And I'm glad I did because dvd::rip is my new favorite ripper.

Updated the program versions in the database and added the new applications listed below.

I'm a digiKam user and overall I've been happy with it, but I've always wanted tagging to be applied to the picture itself and not just the digiKam database. So when I saw that digiKam 0.9 was recently released I hurried over to check out the new features. Happily, the feature I had been craving is now supported and I can rest easy that the time I spend tagging pictures won't just be useful to me, but will also help my family as well.

Does it matter to you if an app is created using Gtk, Qt, or another graphical tool kit? I just published a poll asking what desktop environment you use and to answer that question. I frequently see posters on various forums declining to use a program because it uses a different tool kit than their desktop. How widespread is this behavior and why the preference?

It seems to me that limiting ourselves in this way only lengthens how far applications need to come in order to meet every user's needs. KDE, GNOME, and other environments have been working to ensure interoperability between them, but if our (the users) biases defeat it, then there is still more work to be done.

Until recently I had been a Gmail holdout. My wife uses it all the time, but since I have multiple accounts to monitor I stuck to more traditional email clients. But because I switch between computers frequently, I finally decided to give it a try. One of the first problems I had is that I didn't want to stay logged in all the time through my browser. Fortunately I had run across KCheckGmail before. After a little trouble getting configured, I finally got everything running and KCheckGmail gave me everything I was looking for.

Updated the program versions in the database and added the new applications listed below.

I've always intended Linux App Finder to have a section where you can start with a Windows app to find an alternative that runs on Linux, and I'm pleased to announce that it's complete. Click over to the Windows section to check it out.

There is a good list of Windows titles there now, but anyone who's logged in can add new ones. In addition to the Windows list itself, links appear just under the tags on a Linux app's page to show what Windows software it is an alternative to.

Enjoy.

With the Christmas holiday season coming up, I decided to do a little computer decorating and went looking for the right software. What I found is a program called Xsnow. Xsnow is a simple app that turns your desktop into a snowy landscape with Santa flying across the screen on his sleigh.